Exhaust systems are used for just about every type of vehicle currently in production around the world. It is commonplace for vehicle owners to add accessories to the vehicle to change the appearance of the vehicle. Once particular type of accessory is a decorative exhaust tip typically made of steel or another type of metal which is chrome plated to provide for an aesthetically pleasing appearance.
One type of design uses a slip-on type steel exhaust tip that is connected directly to the end of the exhaust pipe. This design is subject to corrosion and requires additional welding during assembly operations.
FIGS. 1-2 depict a prior art design that has a metal exhaust module 100 that attaches to the rear bumper fascia 102 of the vehicle. The exhaust module 100 has metal body 104 and welded mounting flanges 106. The welded flanges 106 are used to connect the metal body 104 a larger spacer bracket 108 that connects to the rear fascia 102. The connection of the welded flanges 106, spacer 108 and rear fascia 102 is made with several bolts 110 and nuts 112. An outer surface 114 of the metal body 104 is often chrome polished or painted and can be seen when a person looks at the rear bumper fascia 102 of the vehicle. The exhaust module 100 is not connected to the exhaust pipe but has an inlet portion 103 that is positioned in close relation to the end of the exhaust gas tailpipe for receiving and passing exhaust gas through the exhaust module. Exhaust modules of this type often are formed of several welded steel parts and brackets that come into direct contact with the exhaust gas from the exhaust pipe being formed of steel or some other types of metal.
The above described designs result in undesirable gap between the chrome tip of the exhaust tip or exhaust module and the rear bumper fascia of the vehicle because the design must account for thermal expansion of the metal portions exposed to the hot gasses from the exhaust pipe. The exhaust modules designs that mount to the rear fascia also add a considerable amount of weight causing undue stress on the rear fascia, which is often made of plastic. Also both the metal slip on exhaust tip and exhaust module designs described above are costly to produce because they are primarily made of metal. It is therefore desirable to design an exhaust module that is light weight, low cost, and aesthetically pleasing by having a tight fit or minimal gap to the rear fascia of the vehicle. It is also desirable to produce an exhaust gas module that has a minimal number of components for ease of assembly, which would also result in cost savings.